A/N: Sorry for the wait, guys. I haven't been in much of the mood for writing, but if I'm every going to finish a story, it's gonna be this one because I have everything planned out, it just needs to get written. Ugh. Anyways, please read and review, as always. I appreciate everyone's support.

XxX

The days that followed were the most relaxing I'd had in a while. Fending off the occasional assassin was only a blip in my daily routine (of which the first had been the most dangerous, which was just plain disappointing), and watching Reborn mercilessly teach Tsuna was entertainment on its own. Toni and I kept him from leaving campus before his last class and got him up every day easily to shove him out the door whether he was presentable to the public or not. He quickly learned that if he didn't want to walk to school in his rumpled pajamas and unwashed face, he had better get ready before it was time to leave instead of oversleeping.

Overall, Nana seemed incredibly grateful for Tsuna's improving life choices. In exchange, she cooked wonderfully delicious Japanese meals for us. I'd always been a fan of Japanese food throughout both of my first and second lives, and eating homemade Japanese food was the best.

(I was reminded of empty chairs and empty tables, no brother or father in sight, and a mother I'd never known existed, of food delivered to me, tasting cold and bland with none of the warmth of family.)

It was simple to raise idiot Tsuna's grades. Tsuna wasn't (too) stupid, after all, merely incredibly unmotivated with self-confidence issues the size of Russia. Reborn quickly beat that out of his head, and all Tsuna had time to focus on after were studies and training.

Physical training was left up to me. I refused to rub my hands together and cackle like some supervillain from a Marvel movie.

Ah, sweet sweet revenge, I thought, smiling placidly as I swung my disassembled bow at him. He shrieked.

"Matteo-san, please stop!" he cried.

I blinked innocently at him, book in one hand and blade in the other. The book was really boring, but I relished in acting, and hey, if I looked cooler doing it, why not?

"Ah, but this is training," I chirped. "I'm supposed to train you!"

"This isn't training, this is just you being sadistic!" he shrieked, dodging another slow swing from me.

I hummed. "That's true enough."

"Matteo," Toni said, "maybe you should let up a bit? He's not even that strong yet."

"That's right! I'm not strong yet!" Tsuna echoed, and I beamed at him, all rainbows and sunshine.

"Which is why I'm training you, isn't it?" I asked before an unholy grin crept onto my face. "Maybe I should step up my training since you have the energy complain."

"Please don't!"

Yes, training was a very fun way to let off my stress.

XxX

Tsuna's ever day life should have boring. My daily routine consisted of the same thing, over and over, day after day.

First thing in the morning, I woke up at five and checked all of my traps to make sure they were still working and nobody had tripped them. I brushed my teeth and washed my face, donned my attire and pulled my messy hair back into either a bun or a ponytail, and did a brief but thorough scan on the house. Nana was usually peacefully asleep in her too-large room that should have housed a husband (and I would always feel bad for her, because no wife should have to be worried about her husband every day, without a warm body beside her to wake up and fall asleep to). Tsuna would be sprawled out on his back, tangled in his sheets, and Reborn would do his weird sleep-with-eyes-open thing. I'd wake up Toni, and he'd grumble a bit before dragging his butt out of bed.

Sometimes I jogged around the neighborhood. Sometimes I just sat on the roof, watching the sun rise. Mornings were the only time I had to myself, when I could let down my hair (figuratively) and relax. My eyes were sharp and always watching, and ears always perked for any unusual sounds. Toni would fall asleep sometimes during these lazy mornings, and I'd smile and just think, breath in the crisp morning air.

Sometimes, I'd rise one hour earlier than usually, creep out of the house and visit the music buildings on the Namimori University campus. I'd break into a practice room, stroke ivory keys, and play. I'd recall my past life fondly, of competitions and entertaining my friends with piano arranged soundtracks, of composing my own pieces and glowing with pride when I sent recordings to my dad. Sometimes, I'd lose myself and let fingers fly.

Tsuna's alarm was usually my signal to raise my shields, to harden my armor and be ready to plan, think, imagine scenarios and prepare myself. I'd tap Tsuna's window gently to wake up Reborn (who would usually always be awake anyways, but just for personal safety, because one never, never wakes up a sleeping assassin) before swinging and traumatize Tsuna with another morning wake-up call.

After Tsuna was awake and freshly reminded of my very scary presence (heh), we'd all have breakfast, with me showing all my teeth in a terrifying smile and Tsuna squeaking and scrambling to help with the morning chores. I'd grab my weapon and arrows, Toni would bring his conspicuous giant-ass sword, and Tsuna would bring his backpack, and off we would go to the university.

What classes he had depended on what day it was. I flew through chem, math, and psych with flying colors, with Toni bumbling behind like an overgrown puppy, piecing through the Japanese texts and eyes furrowed at the professor. Tsuna was getting better grades with each passing assignment and quiz, which surprised me quite a bit.

Sometimes we'd catch a glance of Kyoko. She was cute, I guess, in a really girly kind of way, like a doll. She seemed like one of those girls who'd throw a fit at being left behind, all teary and sad, but didn't have the strength to do anything about it. That didn't mean that she was a bad person, though. She was nice, always happy, cheerful, and compassionate. A typical damsel-in-distress.

I hated damsels. Why stay weak, when you could grow strong and independent?

One day, I had asked, carelessly and with deliberate crassness, "Hey, Bakayoshi, why do you like the Sasagawa chick?" I did an obvious scan of her body and leered, "Is it her rack? Her ass? She's lacking in both departments, I have to say. I've seen bigger." Toni raised an eyebrow at my attitude. I was usually respectful towards females, mostly because I'd been one before, and I knew how it felt to be one, to whistled at on the street like I was nothing but a slab of incredibly attractive meat on legs.

I'd been shocked when Tsuna had grown red, but not with embarrassment. No, he had been angry at me.

"Not everybody's shallow like you," he'd snapped back at me. "She's maybe not the prettiest girl, but she's sweet and caring. She gives people her attention, and she's gentle towards strangers. Maybe you don't see anything in her, but I do."

And with that, he'd walked away in a huff, leaving me behind with a mildly surprised face.

It looked like Tsuna had grown a backbone sometime during our acquaintance. I guess he wasn't a totally helpless guy, after all.

"You were testing him?" Toni had asked, frown of disapproval stamped on his face.

I'd just shaken my head and followed after the brunet. He wasn't totally helpless, after all.

Afterwards, we'd head back home, and I'd drill him for two hours. Laps, sit ups, pull ups, lunges, endurance runs, I cooked up a whole list of things to do for him. I had no doubt that he hated me for it. After his daily exercises (which I'd do along with Toni, and both of them would be utterly exhausted afterwards), I tutored Tsuna in psychology while Reborn handled the chemistry and math departments. There would be subtle lessons here and there of loyalty, little history stories of when this boss had betrayed his subordinates and was assassinated or when that guy who'd been a great boss but made one little mistake and paid for it with his life.

Dinner would be a nice affair. Nana usually cooked something different every day, surprising me with thoughtful little Italian dishes here and there or food that she had noticed we liked. It wasn't hard to like the woman.

After dinner, I'd do assignments on the roof with Toni, giving him private lessons in Japanese and always watching, always looking for danger (for opportunities), always grasping for a way to destroy the Vongola. Toni himself didn't know anything of my desires and ambitions. My plans were too dark, too ruthless for him, who was the only beacon of light in my life, the only living being I looked to and smiled at.

And at night, I'd sleep with one eye open, always aware, always wary.

XxX

The first exciting thing to happen to us occurred a couple of weeks later. It'd been a very nice day, clear and sunny. Reborn, I notice, was conspicuously absent, which put me on guard for whatever hare-brained scheme he was coming up with. I quickly discovered what, exactly, this scheme was.

The moment we stepped into the lecture hall for Tsuna's intro chem class, a wave of killer intent hit us like an incoming train. I narrowed my eyes and glanced sharply around the room.

Not an assassin, if there was such a strong killer intent radiating throughout the room. No assassin worth his salt would let off such an obvious aura, which left…

Bingo.

There, sitting in the front row, was a familiar teen with silver hair and green eyes. He wore a variety of bracelets and chains, and the moment we stepped in, his attention zeroed onto us. Or more specifically, Tsuna, who'd frozen like a deer in headlights.

"Hayato!" an enthusiastic shout resounded in my ears, and suddenly this guy named Hayato found himself with an armful of Toni. The killer intent abruptly vanished. I chuckled. Toni wasn't called the Juggernaut just for his overwhelming power with his broadsword. His charm and enthusiasm was a force to be reckoned with in itself.

"W-what, Toni?"

"Hayato! I didn't expect to find you here!" Toni said, drawing backwards to smile widely at the other teen.

"Toni," I chided gently, grabbing him by the back of his collar and hauling him away like a naughty kitten. I nodded at Hayato. "It's good to see you, Smoking Bomb."

Gokudera Hayato, otherwise known as the Smoking Bomb, younger brother of the Poison Scorpion Bianchi. I'd met him several times, since Toni and Hayato had been classmates and I'd caught glances of him several times at the academy's practice rooms.

"You too," he muttered distractedly before he caught sight of Tsuna. The killer intent rushed back, and I understood. "So the rumors are true, then?"

"Very true," I confirmed before lugging Toni towards the back of the room, leaving Tsuna to face Hayato's glare by himself.

I texted Reborn once I'd deposited my baggage in the seat beside me. Toni slumped, put out that I'd dragged him away from his friend.

You didn't tell me Smoking Bomb was coming.

I received a prompt reply.

You're the Paladin. Your job is to keep vigilant about the affairs around the heir. It's not my fault you didn't pay attention.

I hissed and snapped my phone shut irritably. I narrowed my eyes at Tsuna as he jogged to sit beside us, preferring to cower by our sides than stay close to the newcomer.

Yes, I'd have to be more vigilant if I wanted to kill Tsuna without any suspicion on my part.

My bracelet jingled quietly as I propped my elbow on the desk and leaned my cheek against my fist in preparation for another boring lecture. I glanced at the black chain. Never forget, and always strive towards my goal.

XxX

"I challenge you to a fight for the position of the Tenth Vongola boss," Hayato demanded right as class ended, towering over a dosing Tsuna. Tsuna blinked at the sudden presence and squealed.

"W-what?" he stuttered.

The boy had grown, no doubt about that. When younger, he'd been hotheaded and impulsive, bristling at any insult towards his mother and always straining to prove himself that he was worth attention. Proving oneself in the mafia world wasn't an easy tast. Now he held his emotions under tight control. However, it seemed that his anger and passion had never waned, always locked under a firm grip and wielded like a knife. I wondered at his motives. Hayato undoubtedly knew that even if he won this little challenge, he would never be able to become the Vongola Tenth. What was he planning?

I tilted my head contemplatively while the two interacted before I let out a little sound of understanding.

Ah. This was Reborn's doing, without a doubt. Most probably in an attempt to start building Tsuna's family, he'd summoned Hayato. Hayato clearly wanted a show of power before acknowledging Tsuna as the heir. Clearly, the kid saw the same thing I did: Tsuna did not have the motivation, and he wanted a measure of Tsuna's strength before he threw his support behind the future Vongola boss.

I stood and smirked when Tsuna paled even more at my gleeful face.

"This sounds like a wonderful training exercise, Bakayoshi. Let's get going, Hayato, and afterwards you can hang out with Toni a bit. The poor kid's getting lonely without his peers around," I said cheerfully.

Ignoring Toni's "I'm not a kid anymore!", I grabbed Tsuna by the arm and steered him outside into the campus courtyard.

"W-wait, we can't challenge e-each other here!" Tsuna exclaimed. "Everybody will n-notice!"

I smirked. Good observation. I'd actually wondered this myself quite a bit when I was attending the academy in Italy. How did the civilians not notice all of the illicit activities going on right in front of their faces? Men with swords strapped on their backs and guns holstered on their thighs, ladies with poisoned needles in their hair and razor sharp smiles, daily explosions in the academy itself. Were the civilians blind?

"People are blind when they want to be, Bakayoshi," I replied. "As long as we don't interfere with their lives too much, they'll turn their heads the other way. Call it selective attention deployment, if you will. We'll just clean up the mess right afterwards and wait for a time when not many people are around, and they'll think the giant hole in the ground is part of a construction project. No need to worry."

He wilted in front of my sunny disposition and Hayato's killer intent. Hayato pulled out several sticks of dynamite and held them between his fingers. I grinned.

"You're about to find out why we call Hayato the Smoking Bomb," I said. Toni bit his nails beside me nervously, and I guided his hand away from his mouth. Biting one's nails was a nasty habit. I couldn't let Tsuna die here, too obvious, but I'd make this torture extend as long as I could. "I'll be the judge of this challenge. Begin!"

XxX

Toni didn't understand why I was so disappointed.

"Not only did he not get hurt, he even won himself a new subordinate," I sulked as I trailed behind Tsuna and his newly made friend.

"Eh, aren't you supposed to be happy about that?" Toni asked tentatively. I gave him a sullen look before sighing.

"I guess I am," I muttered as I glared at Tsuna's back, Hayato bouncing along beside him like he hadn't been aiming to kill Tsuna only a mere hour ago. His previous hostility had evaporated, and in its place was admiration and respect and another puppy that followed Tsuna around. I glanced at Toni and scowled. One puppy was enough.

Stupid Reborn and his stupid bullets and his stupid timing and his stupid and effective life lessons and how did he even manipulate this event?!

I sighed again, and Toni glanced at me worriedly and I waved him off.

"You're going to grow mushrooms if you keep sulking," Reborn said from atop my head, and if I could have without the threat of losing a middle finger, I would have flicked him the bird.

"What does that even mean?" I asked.

"Oh, I know! It's a Japanese thing where if you sulk too much, your aura gets dark and damp enough, and you'll start growing mushrooms on your head!" Toni exclaimed, completely oblivious to the dirty look I was giving him.

"Let them grow."

Stupid Reborn and his stupid bullets and stupid Tsuna's sudden inspiration to save Hayato's life from his own goddamn bombs.

It was such a pity. If Hayato had managed to off him, I would have claimed that a subordinate did not defend his boss's honor in a showdown and that it would have been dishonorable to interfere, and I would have been home free. But nooooo, that's not how the world worked.

I sighed again, and Reborn whapped me sharply on the head as a result.

"Stop sighing, you're ruining the atmosphere."

I sighed again.

XxX

I discovered many things the following week.

It turned out that if a dedicated tutor was found, it wasn't a huge struggle to bring up Tsuna's grades. The problem with Tsuna's education was that he'd never fully learned the basics, and without the basics, he could hardly grasp the more difficult theories. And so, Hayato decided that, for his Tenth and to prove his loyalty, he'd teach Tsuna the basics in all of his subjects, and Reborn and I would be in charge of the more advanced part of his curriculum.

I flipped through his psychology textbook, reacquainting myself with concepts I hadn't studied for twenty two years.

Huh…I remember most of this.

Well, we were only a quarter through the first semester. If pressed, I could catch him up easily. I jotted down important concepts from the first chapter and sat Tsuna down.

"Now, I know that you're not entirely stupid, no matter how much your actions beg to differ," I began, and Tsuna wilted dejectedly from my criticism, "so we're going to start from the first chapter and work our way to the material you're learning now. Then you'll be on your own, understand? No more slacking off, because I'm gonna whip you into shape."

Hayato gave me a glare and bristled at my, no doubt in his mind, disrespectful attitude towards the Tenth. I ignored him. No matter how much of a prodigy Hayato was in his studies and his ability to handle explosives on a daily basis, he didn't have my experience nor my training in combat. I'd beat him with one hand tied behind my back, and he knew it.

It also helped that Toni was latched onto Hayato's arm and chattering a mile a minute. It decreased the intimidation factor by a ton.

"By the end of this, I'll have you reciting Freudian theory in your sleep. Get ready." I tapped a ruler in my hand menacingly, a shadow covering my eyes as I chuckled in a low, intimidating bass.

Something else I'd discovered was that Tsuna was, underneath his whining and shrieking and general inability to function like a human being, surprisingly strong. Not strong physically, since he still couldn't finish my training exercises easily, but strong mentally. Granted, his self-confidence issues were still ginormous, and he saw himself as worthless, but he knew how to make friends, to boost another's confidence and reassure them that he cared.

He took care of Hayato, who had a multitude of issues himself. Once Tsuna had gained a friend, he made sure to keep that friend, to care for them and love them and give himself over to them. He soothed Hayato's insecurities, calmed him when the Italian was frantic and chilled his hot temper.

He also took care of Toni. Toni found a fast friend in the short brunet, and the two studied together, talked together and joked together. I guess that I was supposed to be glad that Toni's only friend wasn't just me, that he'd found another kindred soul in both Tsuna and Hayato. I knew that the seething jealously growing in my gut, the bitterness that he'd found companionship where I had found none, the angry you should be on my side circling around and around in my head like a snake were wrong. I shouldn't have felt what I did, but I did.

I didn't like feeling how I did, which means that the faster I killed Tsuna, the faster I could get away from the fact that Tsuna wasn't a bad guy, that he was actually a really good person. The faster I slid my blade through his throat, the faster I could run away.

XxX

I somewhat admired Tsuna's proclivity towards drawing in people the moment Reborn arrived when he couldn't even make a friend before we barged into his life. I admired it and at the same time, resented it.

It had been a normal day, merely a week after Hayato had joined our merry little group of let's-train-Tsuna-to-become-a-mafia-boss. To my disappointment, he was not progressing at the pace of a turtle. When he set his mind to something, he had the resolve and determination to see it through. His main weak point was his lack of faith in himself.

He would be an admirable mafia boss. He wouldn't get there if I had anything to say about it, though.

Which was a shame, really.

It was during his gym class that we ran into a certain cheerful teen by the name of Yamamoto Takeshi.

Yamamoto Takeshi was on a scholarship for his baseball at Namimori University. While not the smartest, he was sharp and cunning when it came to playing his favorite sport. He could slip underneath defenses with a carefree attitude and then strike home with his bat and baseball.

It was kind of scary, where he could go if he turned that determination into something else.

"'Sup, Tsuna right?" Yamamoto asked, slinging an arm over Tsuna's shoulder when it was time to pick teams for baseball. "You can be on my team!"

I was chosen for the other team, as was Toni, but Hayato was on Yamamoto's team as well.

"Hey, you know he's going to cost us the game! Leave him, he'll make us lose," someone on the sidelines called. To be honest, it was probably true. Tsuna was excessively clumsy and had no hand-to-eye coordination whatsoever.

It was so at odds of what I sometimes saw in training, when, in a flash of inspiration, he'd predict where I'd be attacking from and dodge or block. He had a knack for hand-to-hand combat, but he showed none of that talent in any other daily activities.

"Um…well, if you'll have me," Tsuna replied shyly, and I snorted. This game would be an easy win.

And it was.

We won in a landslide, Toni cheering beside me while Hayato attempted to cheer Tsuna up.

"Maa, it's fine. It's only a game," Yamamoto placated his friends. I was thoroughly unimpressed. I could understand Toni's enthusiasm. He was practically a child mentally, but what the hell was up with the other college students? They were about to turn twenty, for god's sake, not middle school kids. Where did they get off mocking other people for being bad at athletics? Making fun of another's weakness was childish and immature at best, and I sneered when I saw some of Yamamoto's teammates shooting glares over at a shrinking Tsuna.

(I pushed away the little presence in the corner of my mind jumping up and down and shouting "me, me, I bully him too!". Traitor, my mind was sometimes.)

I sighed as Yamamoto gazed out at the field that he and Tsuna were on duty to clean after class. As I waited for Tsuna to finish his duties, arms crossed over my chest, I heard some of their conversation.

"It's just, I feel like the baseball gods have abandoned me," the baseball player lamented, with an unusually serious face. I screwed up my face. The baseball gods? How old were these college kids mentally? "My grades are going down, and my baseball is on a decline as well. But lately, I've heard that your grades have gone up, and you've gotten better at gym, no matter what other people say."

Tsuna sputtered in embarrassment. "I-I didn't really do much myself. I've had help." Well, at least the brat knew it.

"So how did you do it?" Yamamoto asked, eyes earnest and expressive. He really, really wanted to succeed in baseball, didn't he? I could respect that. "How did you change from Dame-Tsuna to…well, this?"

Tsuna backed away, slightly unnerved at the intensity.

"W-well, I've been working really hard lately," Tsuna replied hesitantly and glanced at me. He flinched slightly, and I grinned. Good, he should be wary of me. "I guess more effort is the way to go, I think."

"Tsuna, hurry up. We'll be late to our next class," I barked, and he jumped and hurried to finish gathering the balls and return them to the crate. I eyed Yamamoto, who was also watching me suspiciously. Sharp senses, that one as well. If I didn't know better, I'd have said that he could have been a hitman himself. I tilted my head. "If you're so worried, maybe you should give up and find something else to do. You can't always have what you want. When one thing fails, don't just sit on that failure and think that this is the end. Find something else, another route, another method. There's never a such thing as an end, Yamamoto."

And with that last parting advice, and grabbed Tsuna's arm and dragged him towards the changing rooms.

Because you couldn't always have all you wanted. Hard work didn't amount to success all the time. Look at where my determination to protect Giorgio took me.

XxX

"Yamamoto, he's about to jump! Hurry!"

I looked up from the book I'd been reading during class to pass the time more quickly (it was either that or play a game on my phone, which seemed less acceptable judging by the professor's disapproving glares). Jump? As in jump off a building? Suicide?

Tsuna leapt from his chair and rushed out of room. I blinked slowly before sighing.

"Let's see what the runt's doing now," I muttered, cursing the Yamamoto kid under my breath. Really? Why the hell was everyone so dramatic at this university? It was as if Hayato's arrival lead a whole slew of drama on campus. Hayato had jumped immediately after Tsuna and followed.

Toni followed me, face troubled as we flowed with the crowd of students heading towards a building. There were already some people at the bottom of the building, gathering a tarp in hopes of keeping Yamamoto safe should he fall, but at this height…

I peered up at the top of the building. I wondered if I should do something about the situation. After all, my grudge lay with the Vongola and, by association, Tsuna, not with his classmates. And as heartless and sadistic as I sometimes acted, I didn't enjoy watching others fall to their deaths.

I watched Tsuna rush into the building, most likely to head onto the roof. He was surprisingly proactive for someone who usually timidly stuttered all the time. I nudged Toni in the side.

"Hey, go follow him. I'm going to stay down here," I said, still eyeing the tarp. It was a flimsy security blanket at best. If there was saving needed to be done, I'd be down here, ready to provide support. I laid my hand on my bow, ready to draw and fire. I trusted my aiming skills enough that I was positive I could try pinning their clothes into the brick wall (no comment on the fact that my arrows could pierce brick in the first place, I was just as surprised when I'd gotten state-of-the-art top technology missiles that could dent even metal).

I heard vague shouting from the roof but ignored it, keeping my eye trained for movement. And…there. There seemed to be some sort of commotion as the fence around the roof collapsed. Someone fell off the roof, followed by two other figures that hurtled towards the ground. What were they doing, imitating lemmings? Jesus…

The last two people falling were Tsuna and Toni, and I shook my head in exasperation. Toni could survive this fall, no problem, but Tsuna would quickly become strawberry jam on the hard concrete ground unless Toni did something. Toni grabbed onto Tsuna's arm and jammed his giant sword into the building, no doubt causing a large amount of infrastructure damage but effectively slowing down their descent. I trusted Toni to take care of Tsuna, so I turned my attention to the first figure.

I smoothly drew my bow and aimed, and not long after, shot an arrow at the first falling figure that I identified as Yamamoto. As I predicted, the arrow kissed his skin and pinned his shirt to the wall. However, with the speed at which he was falling, the shirt ripped, and I cursed.

I thought quickly. My arrows couldn't save him, but…

With rapid fire calculations, I fired another arrow several feet off the ground. I'd have to time my actions carefully if I didn't want another death on my conscience. My bow was set on the ground, and I began running towards the building. I breathed through my nose and jumped, setting my foot on the second arrow that was embedded in the wall to give me another ledge before I propelled my body towards Yamamoto.

His body hit my arms, and I grit my teeth at the jarring sensation. I gripped him tightly across the waist and shifted him aside so I got a clear view of the ground.

"This'll be a rough landing, hold on," I muttered before bending my legs in preparation for the impact.

As I'd predicted, the landing was rocky at best. I hissed in strain as I attempted to keep both of us from smashing into the ground entirely. Once we were safe from immediate mortal danger, I dropped him carelessly and rolled to lessen any potential damage to myself. I'd saved Yamamoto's life, I wasn't going to protect him from every scratch his idiotic actions resulted in.

Once my heart stopped pounding, I stood and glanced around for the black haired teen. I spotted him rubbing his head and strode over.

"You're a giant fucking dumbass, you know that?" I asked, towering over him while he was on the ground, arms crossed and glower on my face. "Failure isn't the end of your life. Stand up and move on, because unfortunately for you, the world doesn't revolve around your actions, and I swear if I have to stop you from another suicide attempt, I just might let you go ahead and die."

He stared up at me blankly before a call of "Yamamoto!" drew his attention to Tsuna, who'd landed safely on the ground as well (much more gracefully than I had with Yamamoto) with Toni. Well, more like Toni set him down gently while cushioning his impact with his giant ass sword. I was slightly jealous. Maybe I should have thought about investing in a weapon large enough to damage buildings.

"Tsuna, keep your friends under control. I'm your bodyguard, not your babysitter," I sneered before rolling my shoulders to make sure I hadn't strained anything.

"S-sorry..." Tsuna apologized and quailed under my sharp gaze before scurrying towards the other teen. "Yamamoto-san, are you okay?"

"Don't talk to him that way," Yamamoto's sharp voice cut through the air, and I raised my eyebrows when I turned to find the Japanese man glaring at me.

"Oh?"

Yamamoto switched his attention between Tsuna and me before clarifying. "I'm thankful for what you did, but you have no right to insult someone who works so hard and cares for his friends."

I sighed. Idiots, the lot of them.

"Yeah, sure."

"You okay, Matt?" Toni asked, and I grinned at him.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Good job up there. I'm proud," I replied, and he flushed in satisfaction. Still adorable, I mused as I grabbed my bow and strapped it onto my back again.

All's well that ends well.

(For Tsuna. I wished he'd just fallen, but alas, that wasn't how the dice fell.)

XxX

Sincerely yours,

haplessgrapefrut